Huntly man kicked victim on the face outside Dr Gray's Hospital in Elgin
A fight outside an Elgin hospital resulted in a man being knocked unconscious and requiring emergency surgery to a 3cm laceration to his lip which split and exposed his teeth.
Inverness Sheriff Court heard that Jason Ewings had been in the back of an ambulance with paramedics at Dr Gray's Hospital on September 18 last year when a white Transit van pulled up.
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Fiscal depute Emily Hood told Sheriff Eilidh Macdonald one of the two occupants was 22-year-old Adam Gillies, of New Road, Huntly and Mr Ewings got out of the ambulance and challenged one of them saying: "Which one am I going to fight with first?"
Ms Hood said that Gillies approached Mr Ewings and was punched in the face before paramedics tried to intervene.
"Ewings had dropped his coat and as he bent down to pick it up, the accused kicked him on the face, and Ewings hit his head on the ground and was knocked unconscious. The accused ran off," Ms Hood said.
The prosecutor added that Gillies later handed himself in to police and Mr Ewings, who she accepted was the first aggressor, sustained a significant mouth injury, required surgery and has been left with a scar.
Gillies admitted assault to severe injury and permanent disfigurement.
Sheriff Macdonald ordered him to carry out 160 hours of unpaid community work and to remain under social work supervision for two years as an alternative to custody.
She told him: "This is very alarming. It was an action of significant violence resulting in significant injury. I have some concerns but I am not sending you to jail today. What is saving you is your age and the fact you have no previous convictions for violence."
